Police lathicharge teachers in Ukhia, arrest some

Police lathi-charged a protest by teachers demanding reinstatement in the Rohingya camp in Ukhia, Cox’s Bazar. Several protesters were injured during the protest. Several people, including student representatives of the July Movement, were taken into police custody from the scene. The protesters have surrounded the Ukhia police station premises since the incident. The incident took place at around 9 am on Wednesday (August 20) at the Folipara road intersection of Ukhia Upazila Sadar Station on the Cox’s Bazar-Teknaf road. The identities of all the protesters injured and taken into custody in the incident could not be confirmed. However, various sources have confirmed that Jinia Sharmin Ria, one of the former district coordinators of the anti-discrimination student movement, is among those detained. However, some protesting dismissed teachers said that 40/50 aggrieved teachers were peacefully protesting at the Folipara road intersection of Ukhia Sadar Station in the morning. They continued their program by standing on the side of the road without causing any public inconvenience. At one point, the police came and ordered the protesters to move away. When they continued to disobey the police orders, the protesters were lathicharged. 7/8 protesting teachers were injured in the incident. At this time, the police detained 10/15 protesters from the scene. The injured are being treated at the Ukhia Upazila Health Complex. The protesters said that those who have been taken into custody should be released immediately. In addition, they will not move from here until their demands are met. Cox’s Bazar District Additional Superintendent of Police (Media Officer) Md. Jasim Uddin Chowdhury said, ‘The protesters have been removed to reduce the suffering of the common people. The situation is now normal. We have taken a few people into custody there. A decision will be taken after verifying their case. However, a meeting was held with the dismissed teachers the previous day.’ Earlier, the dismissed teachers blocked the road for 9 hours from 7 am to 4 pm on Monday with the same demand. Thousands of vehicles were stranded on the Cox’s Bazar-Teknaf road. Traffic jams were created over an area of about 6 kilometers. The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and Save the Children announced the closure of all educational activities run by NGOs in the Rohingya camps of Ukhia and Teknaf in a letter to the Cox’s Bazar Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner (RRRC) on June 3. As a result, 1,250 protesting teachers were dismissed. However, while locals were dismissed, no Rohingya working in the camps were dismissed.